Sports
Women's cricket is on the rise, gaining more and more popularity and importance especially on the international stage. So what better opportunity to catch up on what's been happening in the last month? First, I want to explain exactly how the women's game works. The top 8-ranked teams compete in ODIs over 3 years in the ICC Women's Championship, battling to qualify for the next Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand in 2021. The hosts and other top 4 teams in the Championship - which works in a league format with points given for every win - qualify directly for the World Cup, while the bottom 3 will fight it out in a ten-team qualification tournament for the remaining 3 World Cup spots. In this Championship league, instead of playing against one match against one team at a time, the nations go on tours and play series against each other, with the ODIs contributing to the Championship tally. Australia, who have been the most successful team at World Cups, winning it 6 times in the past, hosted New Zealand last month in 3 ODIs, and won all three matches against their neighbours, sweeping up all 6 available points. The first match was a close as things get, with New Zealand falling just 5 runs short of their 242-target in 50 overs. The second match was more one-sided, with Australia winning by 95 runs thanks to an unbeaten Ellyse Perry maiden century in international cricket. The final match saw a tight run chase which went in Australia's favour, as they successfully chased down their 232-target to win by 7 wickets. In the final match of Pakistan's series against the West Indies in Dubai, Pakistan (the acting hosts) defeated the Windies by 4 wickets to take home the series 2-1. The West Indies batted first and managed only 159, a total that Pakistan reached with 4 wickets in hand. This series win is a historic achievement for the Pakistan Women's team and will give them a lot of confidence before facing South Africa in May. England's women are on a roll. First, they beat India on their own turf 2-1 in ODIs and then 3-0 in the T20 series, including a thriller in the final match in Guwahati. England bowler Cross held her nerve in the last over to guide her team to a 2 run victory over the hosts. India’s stand-in captain Smriti Madana had a splendid series, scoring 59 runs off 38 balls in the final match to top the ICC rankings. She has urged all her teammates to perform better in their domestic circuit after a below average performance in this series. England have since then flown south to Sri Lanka, where they overpowered Sri Lanka in the ODIs, winning all three by very safe margins. They've dismantled the Sri Lankan team in the first two T20s since then and are looking to complete another 3-0 sweep when they meet on Thursday. Turning to the IPL, we've seen already that young talent and hardened experience can have very different impacts on a match. So today I want to take a few minutes to look at some legends of the game who could potentially be playing in their last IPL. Yuvraj Singh: The veteran cricketer remained unsold in the first round of this year's auction before the Mumbai Indians showed faith in him, bagging him at his base price of 1 crore. During the 2015 IPL players'auction, the left-hander was pocketed by the Delhi Daredevils for a whopping 16 crores. However, Yuvraj's dismal performances in domestic cricket forced franchises to show very little interest in him. But based on his first performance this year, scoring a half-century against his former team, he may have some fight left in him yet. Shane Watson: At 37, Watson has defied age with some great performances both with the bat and ball. In 2018, Watson played a significant role for Chennai Super Kings, helping MS Dhoni's side clinch the trophy. Watson amassed 555 runs from 15 games last year, averaging 39.64 with a fantastic strike rate of 154.59. The all-rounder also scalped six wickets, at an economy rate of under nine. However, he'll be 38 next year and is likely to feature for the last time in the tournament. A duck on the opening day could not have been a worse start for him this year. AB de Villiers: The oldest but definitely the most valuable cog in Royal Challengers Bangalore's wheel is de Villiers. The South African star has retired from international cricket but will continue to feature in the lucrative league. Known as the 3360-degreebatsman, AB possesses hard hitting skills, is a more than decent wicket-keeper and an agile fielder who can put acrobats to shame. On a good day, he can single-handedly win matches for his team. He'll be looking to build on a dismal performance against CSK in Match 1. Chris Gayle: The self-proclaimed Universe Boss is the most feared batsman in IPL history. Before this season, Gayle had 3994 runs in 111 innings (the second-highest for an overseas batsman in the IPL). Gayle was at his peak between 2011-13, averaging around 60 in those three years. While playing for RCB, Gayle was another man who could single-handedly decide matches. However, his form has seen a slight dip in recent years and he's been inconsistent in the past few seasons. Gayle was picked up very late in the previous auction by Kings XI Punjab, but they'll be glad they did it after his blistering performance against Rajasthan Royals. Imran Tahir: Imran Tahir went on to become the World No.1 bowler in the shortest format of the game at age 37. Positivity and a never-say-die attitude have been Tahir's mantra for success all these years, which you can see every time he takes to the field. However, the leg-spinner is very close to his 40s, which could be a factor when his name appears for next year's auctions. The South African has done well in the past for CSK and other teams however, it is very unlikely that Tahir's IPL career would continue after this year. But looking at his performance and celebrations against RCB, you'd never guess that he was getting on in age!